As the African American population increased in West Virginia, the need for medical care in the Black community intensified. The Mountain State’s Black population skyrocketed from roughly 18,000 in 1870 to nearly 118,000 by 1940. During the Jim Crow Era, West Virginia had more African American healthcare providers and hospitals than any other state in central and southern Appalachia. However, racial disparities in healthcare still existed, with Black West Virginians experiencing higher death and infection rates than White West Virginians. [1]
